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The Twilight Zone (2019 TV series)
| creator = Rod Serling | developer = | narrated = Jordan Peele | composer = }} | country = United States | language = English | num_seasons = 1 | num_episodes = 9 | list_episodes = #Episodes | executive_producer = | producer = | cinematography = | location = Vancouver, British Columbia | editor = Scott Turner | runtime = 37–56 minutes | company = *Genre Films }} | network = CBS All Access | first_aired = | last_aired = | preceded_by = | website = https://www.cbs.com/shows/the-twilight-zone/ | website_title = Official website }} The Twilight Zone is an American anthology web television series developed by Simon Kinberg, Jordan Peele, and Marco Ramirez, based on the original 1959 television series created by Rod Serling. The series premiered on April 1, 2019, on CBS All Access. Peele serves as the narrator of this incarnation, in addition to executive producing through Monkeypaw Productions. On April 29, 2019, the show was renewed for a second season. Production Development On December 19, 2012, it was announced that Bryan Singer had finalized a deal to develop, executive produce, and potentially direct a third revival of The Twilight Zone for CBS Television Studios. Additionally, at the time of the announcement, the production had yet to hire a writer, begun being shopped to networks and was still finalizing a deal with the Serling estate. On March 7, 2013, it was reported that a writer was in negotiations to join the series. By 2016, Simon Kinberg and Craig Sweeny had joined the production and CBS was weighing whether to shop the project to other networks or streaming services or to place it on their own CBS All Access. Kinberg eventually left the project to write and direct the film Dark Phoenix and Singer and Sweeny soon dropped out as well. On November 2, 2017, it was announced that CBS was redeveloping the revival for their streaming service CBS All Access. Additionally, it was reported that Jordan Peele was in talks to executive produce the series through his production company Monkeypaw Productions and that Marco Ramirez was in talks to serve as showrunner. On December 6, 2017, it was announced that CBS had given the production a series order. Peele and Ramirez were confirmed to executive produce alongside Simon Kinberg, Win Rosenfeld, Audrey Chon, Carol Serling, and Rick Berg. Peele, Ramirez, and Kinberg were also set to collaborate on the series' premiere episode. Production companies involved with the series were slated to consist of CBS Television Studios, Monkeypaw Productions, and Genre Films. On August 6, 2018, it was confirmed that the first season would consist of ten episodes. Additionally, it was reported that the production had established a writers' room and completed concepts, outlines, and scripts for the first season in various stages of development. The series was not planned to have a formal showrunner but director Greg Yaitanes was set to be in charge of overseeing continuity among episodes. On September 20, 2018, it was announced that, in addition to executive producing, Peele would serve as the series' narrator and host. On October 2, 2018, it was announced via a promotional video for the series that Gerard McMurray was directing an episode with Mathias Herndl serving as his director of photography. On November 15, 2018, it was reported that Alex Rubens would write an episode of the series. On April 29, 2019, the show was renewed for a second season. Casting In October 2018, it was announced that Sanaa Lathan and Adam Scott had been cast in guest starring roles; Lathan would appear in an episode titled "Rewind" and Scott in an episode titled "Nightmare at 30,000 Feet", a remake of the original series episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet". On November 15, 2018, it was reported that Kumail Nanjiani had been cast in a guest starring role. In December 2018, it was announced that John Cho, Allison Tolman, Jacob Tremblay, Erica Tremblay, Steven Yeun, and Greg Kinnear would appear in guest starring roles. Cho, Tolman, and the Tremblays would appear in an episode titled "The Wunderkind" and Yeun and Kinnear in an episode titled "The Traveler". In January 2019, it was reported that DeWanda Wise, Jessica Williams, Lucinda Dryzek, Jefferson White, Jonathan Whitesell, Taissa Farmiga, Rhea Seehorn, Luke Kirby, Ike Barinholtz, and Percy Hynes White had been cast in guest starring roles. Wise, Williams, Dryzek, White, and Whitesell would appear in one episode while Farmiga, Seehorn, Kirby, Barinholtz, and Hynes-White would be featured in another. On February 7, 2019, it was announced that Ginnifer Goodwin, James Frain, and Zabryna Guevara had been cast to guest star in an episode titled "Point of Origin". The full trailer revealed that Tracy Morgan, Glenn Fleshler and Chris Diamantopoulos would make guest appearances with Morgan appearing alongside Nanjiani, Fleshler in "Rewind" alongside Lathan, and Diamantopoulos joining Scott in "Nightmare at 30,000 Feet". It was revealed through the official Twitter page that Seth Rogen would appear in an episode. In March 8, 2019, it was announced Zazie Beetz and Betty Gabriel would appear in an episode, while Chris O'Dowd and Amy Landecker would appear in an episode titled "The Blue Scorpion". In March 28, 2019, it was announced that Damson Idris would appear in an episode titled "Replay", which was previously titled "Rewind". Filming Principal photography for the series began on October 1, 2018, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and concluded on March 20, 2019. Episodes |episodes= | ShortSummary = Struggling comedian Samir Wassan meets legendary comic J.C. Wheeler, who advises him to include personal material in his routines. After doing a successful routine centered around his dog, Samir returns home and discovers that not only did his dog vanish, but no one seems to remember that it ever existed. He then learns that jokes about the people in his life get laughs but cause them to disappear from existence. After accidentally erasing his nephew, Devin, Samir starts erasing people he thinks the world would be better off without. His girlfriend, Rena, leaves him after one of the people he erases causes her to go from a successful lawyer to a struggling waitress. Samir continues abusing his power, going so far as erasing rival comic Didi Scott, until Rena confronts him during a set with a journal containing names of those he has erased. Realizing he has become a selfish monster, Samir erases himself from existence, creating a universe where he never existed and everyone previously erased continues to exist. Didi, now a rising star, meets Wheeler following a set and asks for his advice. Cast : Kumail Nanjiani, Amara Karan, Diarra Kilpatrick, Ryan Robbins, Tracy Morgan | LineColor = 22202E }} | OriginalAirDate = | ShortSummary = PTSD-suffering journalist Justin Sanderson boards Northern Goldstar Airlines Flight 1015 from Washington, D.C. to Tel Aviv after accepting a job offer. Shortly before takeoff, Justin finds an MP3 player in his seat pocket and discovers it contains a podcast revolving around "the mystery of Northern Goldstar Flight 1015," which disappeared an hour into the flight. As the podcast accurately describes events involving his fellow passengers, Justin juggles controlling his nerves and confiding in Joe Beaumont, a former pilot who seems to be the only person who believes him. He tries using clues from the podcast to avert the disaster, but every attempt results in irritated crew and passengers. Joe then convinces Justin to help him gain access to the flight deck so he can land the plane safely in Canada. The two accomplish their mission but Justin realizes at the last minute that Joe is responsible for the crash. Waking up on an atoll, Justin learns via the podcast that everyone survived while he is considered missing. The other survivors proceed to surround Justin and beat him to death as he claims that he was trying to save them. Cast : Adam Scott, Chris Diamantopoulos, Dan Carlin, Katie Findlay, Nicholas Lea | LineColor = 22202E }} | ShortSummary = While at a roadside diner with her college-bound son Dorian, Nina Harrison discovers her old family camcorder has the power to turn back time when she presses the rewind button and that she is the only one aware of its capabilities. The two then encounter Officer Lasky, a racist state trooper who pulls them over for speeding before becoming violent with them. Nina rewinds time and convinces Dorian to pull over by claiming she doesn't feel well. This time, however, Lasky holds them for not pulling over properly. Nina attempts to change time by first stopping at a motel and then trying to sympathize with Lasky at the diner, but both attempts end in Lasky harming or killing Dorian. Nina then visits her estranged brother Neil, who not only believes her story but helps her get Dorian to the college campus. When Lasky arrives with a group of state troopers, Nina, Neil, and the students stand their ground, prompting Lasky to leave. Ten years later, Dorian is a father to daughter Trinity and Nina holds onto the camcorder. After Trinity accidentally breaks the camcorder, Dorian tells Nina to let go and leaves to run an errand as she and Trinity look on. Sirens are heard after the screen fades to black. Cast : Sanaa Lathan, Damson Idris, Glenn Fleshler, Steve Harris | LineColor = 22202E }} | ShortSummary = Alaska police sergeant Yuka Mongoyak arranges for her brother Jack to be pardoned at Captain Lane Pendleton's annual Christmas party, which she detests. At the height of the festivities, Yuka discovers another inmate has mysteriously appeared in the station's holding cells. The stranger, whose name is "legally" A. Traveler, claims he is an extreme tourist who has heard of Pendleton's "famous" parties. As Traveler becomes friendly with the guests, Yuka grows suspicious of his identity. Pendleton soon grows suspicious when Traveler reveals information he should have no way of knowing. When Yuka, Jack, and Pendleton spot antennas on Traveler's head, Traveler deflects their suspicions by claiming Pendleton is in league with the Russians. Pendleton then leaves to check on the shed powering the town while Traveler promises Yuka that she will be in charge and that "his people" will come and take over. Yuka proceeds to corner Pendleton and hold him at gunpoint as UFOs descend from the sky. At the station, Jack shares a piece of pumpkin pie with Traveler, now in his true alien form, and states things would be better with him in charge. Cast : Steven Yeun, Marika Sila, Greg Kinnear, Patrick Gallagher | LineColor = 22202E }} | ShortSummary = Campaign manager Raff Hanks finds himself in a hospital and recounts the events leading up to his hospitalization to an orderly. Years earlier, after inadvertently ruining then-sitting President Stevens' chances at getting reelected and destroying his career, Raff spots a news item about eleven-year-old YouTube star Oliver Foley announcing his candidacy for President. Seizing the opportunity to redeem himself, Raff convinces Oliver's parents about having him run. While the public supports Oliver, he struggles to answer questions about current issues and humiliates himself during a debate. Raff then bases Oliver's campaign around family after learning his dog is dying of cancer, resulting in Oliver winning the Iowa caucus and subsequently becoming President. Oliver takes control of the White House, prompting Raff to regret his actions. When Oliver catches wind of Raff's "treason", he reveals he lied about his dog dying to get votes before convincing the Secret Service to shoot Raff. In the present, Raff learns from the orderly that the surgeon operating on him is an apathetic child due to Oliver passing a law forbidding older doctors. Cast : John Cho, Jacob Tremblay, Allison Tolman, Kimberley Sustad, Lane Edwards, Erica Tremblay, John Larroquette | LineColor = 22202E }} | ShortSummary = As Earth is in the middle of a nuclear war, the crew of a Martian expedition start to regret their life-altering decisions. Cast : DeWanda Wise, Jessica Williams, Jefferson White, Lucinda Dryzek, Jonathan Whitesell | LineColor = 22202E }} | ShortSummary = After a meteor shower, men start to become aggressive and violent, as a woman and her sister work to survive their crazed lovers. Cast : Taissa Farmiga, Rhea Seehorn, Percy Hynes White, Luke Kirby, Peter Kelamis, Ike Barinholtz | LineColor = 22202E }} | ShortSummary = After her housekeeper is arrested by operatives from HSI, a housewife with a posh lifestyle is taken away from her husband and kids and discovers from an HSI agent that she's a refugee from another dimension. Cast : Ginnifer Goodwin, James Frain, Toby Levins, Zabryna Guevara, Karin Konoval, Michael Eklund, Robert Mann | LineColor = 22202E }} | ShortSummary = Following the death of his dad, an anthropology professor finds the re-emergence of a gun called the Blue Scorpion which is about to become his most personal research project. Cast : Chris O'Dowd, Amy Landecker, Alex Diakun, James Morrison, Adam Korson | LineColor = 22202E }} | ShortSummary = A writer finds herself stalked by a mysterious person who is there one minute and isn't there the next minute. Cast : Seth Rogen, Zazie Beetz, Betty Gabriel | LineColor = 22202E }} }} Release On January 30, 2019, it was announced during the Television Critics Association's annual winter press tour that the series would premiere on April 1, 2019. Marketing On February 3, 2019, a teaser trailer for the series aired during the telecast of Super Bowl LIII. The commercial played as though it was interrupting CBS' feed of the game and it featured host Jordan Peele standing in an empty Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Another trailer was released on February 21. Reception On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds an approval rating of 75% based on 73 reviews, with an average rating of 7.53/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The Twilight Zone explores the strangeness of the modern world through Rod Serling's winning formula, creating a thought-provoking -- if not always spine-tingling -- showcase for Jordan Peele and his exceptional crop of collaborators." Metacritic assigned the first season a weighted average score of 61 out of 100 based on 35 critics, indicating "generally positive reviews." BBC gave it a positive review and said that: "It's possible that ... Rod Serling and Jordan Peele switched places. As co-creator and on-screen host of the new version, he Peele updates the series while capturing the original's essence." The Week was more mixed in its review, calling the first episodes "unforgivably long", but also saying that the series stays "true to the ethos of The Twilight Zone" and that "the episodes are free-standing and timeless". The Verge also gave it a mixed review, praising Jordan Peele as the narrator, but saying the series should try to step away from the original. The Atlantic was more critical, comparing it unfavorably to the original series, stating, "with the exception of one superior episode, 'Replay', it's hard to conceive that an artist as prodigiously talented and thoughtful as Peele is creatively involved at all." References External links * * Category:2010s American drama television series Category:2010s American science fiction television series Category:2019 American television series debuts Category:2010s American anthology television series Category:CBS All Access original programming Category:English-language television programs Category:Television series by CBS Television Studios Category:Television series created by Jordan Peele Category:Television series created by Simon Kinberg Category:Television series reboots Category:The Twilight Zone Category:Television series produced in Vancouver